Sly 2: Band of Thieves
Sly and company pull off a heist and steal from us what we hold dearest: our hearts.
Published: October 4, 2004
For any of the appreciative gamers open-minded enough to give Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus a try back in 2002, they likely found themselves submerged in one of the most irresistible platforming experiences on any console. With those challenging but addictive platforming portions and unforgettable, clever boss fights, all delivered in a near-perfect presentation, this was a game worth remembering, and it became almost immediately apparent that developer Sucker Punch had struck a gold mine. Now, two years later, Sly 2: Band of Thieves, is among us, and boy… are we impressed. Sure, the team could have just duplicated the concept of the first Sly game, but thrown into the mix more levels to satisfy those who criticized the shortness of its predecessor, but that would be taking the easy way out. Instead, Sucker Punch has compiled a completely new concept, where both Sly and his two lifelong (and now playable) pals, Bentley and Murray, must pull off a string of small jobs leading up to multiple meticulously-crafted heists. The daring new direction sacrifices none of the craft that shined in the first Sly Cooper, but instead, makes for a dose of action that no gamer can do without.
With the events of the first game done and over with, it's two years later and a threat to the Cooper family has once again risen. Clockwork, the metallic beast of an owl fuelled by hate for the thieving family, had his parts brought to a local museum after his defeat at Sly's hands. To assure their nemesis would never be reconstructed, our favorite raccoon and gang have snuck the museum to jack his body parts. Arriving at the scene, jaws are dropped in disbelief when it turns out the pieces have already been stolen. Immediately after, making her predictable appearance is Sly's favorite pursuing cop, Carmelita Fox, and thanks to some info dropped by her accomplice, Constable Neyla, the gang learns that the Klaww Gang is likely behind the heist. From then on in, it's off to key worldwide locations to retrieve the pieces and ensure Clockwork never again takes form.
Now stop. Before you say to yourself, "Hunting down a bunch of gang members for specific items? This sounds familiar…," bite your tongue. Sly 2's early stages may kick off in a similar fashion to its predecessor, but multiple story twists and turns later, the game has you taking on entirely unexpected tasks that would have been totally out of the question beforehand. Case made, Band of Thieves' story is a much more involving, evoking experience than the first game in almost every way. Trusts will be broken, dreams will be tarnished, and you'll have a front row seat to every bit of the unfolding plot. Sucker Punch really deserves some credit for constructing a seemingly on-rails story that soon enough, runs off the tracks and swerves in just about every direction you wouldn't expect. And while I will be honest in saying I was just a tad letdown by the game's conclusion, just about everything else in the story department is priceless.
As mentioned earlier, no longer do you take on the role of simply Sly Cooper in this sequel, but also as his two go-to companions, the brainy tortoise of the three, Bentley and the senseless but lighthearted hippo, Murray. Not only has the character department been given a fresh addition, but as has the overall gameplay concept. Pulling off these numerous heists to retrieve each Clockwork part requires careful planning, but thanks to you, Bentley has all of that covered. You'll usually begin each level as Sly and have to head down to where the action is to take some reconnaissance photos. Using these, our shell-sporting brainiac tries to construct an overall plan to pull off the mission, but steps must be taken before the actual heist can take action. Typically, you'll go off into the level completing a set of small tasks as either Sly, Murray or Bentley that somehow, someway are connected with the master mission. These missions range from hacking computers (it's back and better than ever!) to pick pocketing a number of guard keys (more on that later) to… stealing bear cubs and causing them to start tussling so that their mother comes bolting in to the rescue.
Now, as if the latter didn't give it away, you'll often be assigned or complete a mission and be absolutely boggled as to how it's linked to retrieving that specific Clockwork part. As cleverly constructed as the game is, though, you'll get to the real robbery and have one of those complete "Ohhhh!" realizations in seeing how that seemingly unrelated job from before helped pull off the heist. What's great about the whole planning process too is that is really does feel like every little accomplished task is bringing you closer to pulling off that big theft. After every couple of missions, Bentley will assemble the crew in the level's safe house and lay out the overall plan, complete with projection slides and numerous sloppy pen markings, done John Madden style. Once all's in line, he'll present the necessary steps needed to throw off surrounding guards, create a diversion, or make whatever distraction necessary to render the Clockpart unprotected and make for a smooth robbery and getaway. I can't help but to hint at a certain heist that puts the first game's timed-button sequences to an even wittier use than its predecessor. Two words: ballroom dancing. Things, of course, don't always go as planned, and accommodations must often be made to account for such. Once again, the totally off-course delivery of Sly 2 makes for just a genius concept that few games have proved worthy of accomplishing.
While everyone who played the first Sly Cooper is by now familiar with the controls of the thieving raccoon, handling Bentley and Murray is a whole different ballgame. Each character has their strengths and weaknesses, and while Sly is naturally the most well-rounded of the three, his companions offer a welcome alternative to his rooftop-to-rooftop stealthiness. Bentley, for one, takes a more calculated approach on the battlefield, and is equipped with a supply of bombs and a tranquilizer gun, which also works as a melee weapon, though a bit on the futile side. It's worth mentioning that he's also an absolute riot to play as, dancing on his toes when immobile and hiking up his back when making a run for it. On the contrary, Murray (or as you'll become familiar with him through his superhero persona, "The Murray") is the muscle, and with moves that include power-packing punches and a pick-up-and-throw ability, handles enemy attacks with the most ease.
In between completing the dozens of jobs leading to the big heist per level, Sly 2 offers an entertaining little side-mission, if you will, that lend more to the thieving reputation of our protagonists. Scattered in each level are gleaming pieces of loot that can be picked up and brought back to the safe house. Most will begin to count down to self-destruction once you grab hold of them, and spanning across the level in a fight against the clock can be quite enjoyable. Guards patrolling the area will often times be carrying small valuables in their back pouches (you'll notice by the little shine created by them), from golden pens to actual gems, and with Sly's tasty new pickpocketing technique, they can be robbed for all their worth without noticing a thing, if you're good at it. So just what are all of these valuables good for? Thanks to Bentley's Internet-enabled laptop, they can be sold over ThiefNet, the game's Ebay-like program good for selling stolen loot and buying up new gadgets and power-ups for a set amount of coins. In racking up enough coins, which also includes tearing stuff up within the level and reaping the golden benefits they spew, you're able to put 'em to use by picking up new abilities for Sly, Bentley and Murray. Sly can additionally add to his expanded arsenal by collecting the thirty bottles to be found in each level and cracking open a safe using a three-digit code provided by ol' Bentley. Though these abilities, once acquired, will remain on your Gadget Grid, only three can be assigned at each time (one for L1, L2 and R2). You'll likely only give the majority of them a shot once and never touch them again, but nonetheless, it still adds a touch of variety to the game's combat.
Shortness may have been the primary complaint of the first Sly Cooper game, but Sly 2 makes up for it in spades. A one-time play-through of the game is going to take you 15-20 hours, tripling the six hour experience its predecessor offered (not including the Time Attack Mode). Best of all, everything flows together so damn seamlessly, with story transitions keeping you constantly on the edge of your seat, that it never feels like Sly 2 is being drawn out. You'll be hooked from the minute you grasp your controller and will be engaged until the very end.
With all that Sly 2: Band of Thieves has going for it, it pains me to have to point out the minor gameplay quibbles that my critiquing honesty won't let me pass up. With ditching the one-hit kill concept (and adding a health meter for each character), the game puts a heavy emphasis on evasion and stealth, even for a brawler like Murray. For the most part, it holds up well, and Sly's and Murray's abilities to take enemies out from behind and Bentley's dart-em-and-bomb-em technique do get the job done. If you mistakenly stumble into an enemy's field of view, though, you're vulnerable to a complete, relentless onslaught from the patrolling guards within range. Once the gun-equipped patrollers get on your tail, it's damn near impossible to take out the opposition without having your health gauge suffer the consequences (health pick-ups can only go so far). Even when running from battle, your pursuers will follow, and only with Sly's quick agility can you shake them off with the least trouble. If the enemies were just a bit more forgiving, Sly 2 would nab that perfect 10, but just know that this slight drawback is truly overshadowed by the remarkable gameplay offered here.
Cel-shading has been all the rage these past couple of years in the industry, and the Sly Cooper series has been one of the few to employ it in such an abstract sense that you'll wonder how you ever tolerated the other graphic garbage. What really do a number in the originality department are the thick character outlines, lifelike shadows and the flourishing beams radiating from guard flashlights and security floods overhead. There's just so much visual detail composing the characters and scenic accompaniments around you that one can't help but be impressed. Levels are as cleverly cartoon-like and lush as they come, the draw distance just is intimidating (just try ascending the highest peak in a stage and taking a gander), comic-like cutscenes impress, and every little subtlety comes together to paint an aesthetic masterpiece before your eyes. Having to get as picky as possible here, the only drawbacks I came across was the scarce inability to catch sight of the mission icons (which radiate in the sky a la Batman) at times, ever-so-brief camera slip-ups and the one occasion I noticed slowdown. That's it. I swear.
I'm going to be frank right of the bat here: I fell in love with the voices of Sly 2. On numerous occasions did I actually burst out laughing in response to the game's comically flourishing dialogue. These are characters you're going to remember: the cool, concentrated comments from Sly, the nasally, zealous yelps from Bentley when operations get out of hand, and the loveable vows of superhero action from "The Murray" are pure gold. The soundtrack delivers in an equally impressive outing, with each of the game's episodes sporting a looping tune appropriate for the environment (rustic-sounding music for the woods of Canada and tense strings in a haunted house-like stage, just to name a few). The genius subtleties from the first game make a reappearance as well, namely the muted pluckings as you simultaneously tip-toe on a ledge or sneak up on an unsuspecting guard. And may I make a suggestion? Every so often, crank down the music level and enjoy the harmonious sound effects that accompany each level, be they the soft crashes of the ocean or clicks and clanks from a bottle dancing atop a nearby flagpole. The ambient audio effects are dead-on, and ice the cake of just a fantastic soundtrack and line-up of character voiceovers.
Do you really need any more convincing? For the love of everything sacred in this world, bolt out the door pronto and scoop up a copy of Sly 2: Band of Thieves. If you were one of the few saps who actually missed out on Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus, heck, pick that up too and find out where the brilliance began. I have no qualms in saying that Sly 2 is hands-down the year's best platformer. This is just a masterfully constructed adventure that drips with charm and ingenuity and never fails to keep you involved, entertained, and loving every minute of it. You can take our word on it: this one is a gem.
With the events of the first game done and over with, it's two years later and a threat to the Cooper family has once again risen. Clockwork, the metallic beast of an owl fuelled by hate for the thieving family, had his parts brought to a local museum after his defeat at Sly's hands. To assure their nemesis would never be reconstructed, our favorite raccoon and gang have snuck the museum to jack his body parts. Arriving at the scene, jaws are dropped in disbelief when it turns out the pieces have already been stolen. Immediately after, making her predictable appearance is Sly's favorite pursuing cop, Carmelita Fox, and thanks to some info dropped by her accomplice, Constable Neyla, the gang learns that the Klaww Gang is likely behind the heist. From then on in, it's off to key worldwide locations to retrieve the pieces and ensure Clockwork never again takes form.
Now stop. Before you say to yourself, "Hunting down a bunch of gang members for specific items? This sounds familiar…," bite your tongue. Sly 2's early stages may kick off in a similar fashion to its predecessor, but multiple story twists and turns later, the game has you taking on entirely unexpected tasks that would have been totally out of the question beforehand. Case made, Band of Thieves' story is a much more involving, evoking experience than the first game in almost every way. Trusts will be broken, dreams will be tarnished, and you'll have a front row seat to every bit of the unfolding plot. Sucker Punch really deserves some credit for constructing a seemingly on-rails story that soon enough, runs off the tracks and swerves in just about every direction you wouldn't expect. And while I will be honest in saying I was just a tad letdown by the game's conclusion, just about everything else in the story department is priceless.
As mentioned earlier, no longer do you take on the role of simply Sly Cooper in this sequel, but also as his two go-to companions, the brainy tortoise of the three, Bentley and the senseless but lighthearted hippo, Murray. Not only has the character department been given a fresh addition, but as has the overall gameplay concept. Pulling off these numerous heists to retrieve each Clockwork part requires careful planning, but thanks to you, Bentley has all of that covered. You'll usually begin each level as Sly and have to head down to where the action is to take some reconnaissance photos. Using these, our shell-sporting brainiac tries to construct an overall plan to pull off the mission, but steps must be taken before the actual heist can take action. Typically, you'll go off into the level completing a set of small tasks as either Sly, Murray or Bentley that somehow, someway are connected with the master mission. These missions range from hacking computers (it's back and better than ever!) to pick pocketing a number of guard keys (more on that later) to… stealing bear cubs and causing them to start tussling so that their mother comes bolting in to the rescue.
Now, as if the latter didn't give it away, you'll often be assigned or complete a mission and be absolutely boggled as to how it's linked to retrieving that specific Clockwork part. As cleverly constructed as the game is, though, you'll get to the real robbery and have one of those complete "Ohhhh!" realizations in seeing how that seemingly unrelated job from before helped pull off the heist. What's great about the whole planning process too is that is really does feel like every little accomplished task is bringing you closer to pulling off that big theft. After every couple of missions, Bentley will assemble the crew in the level's safe house and lay out the overall plan, complete with projection slides and numerous sloppy pen markings, done John Madden style. Once all's in line, he'll present the necessary steps needed to throw off surrounding guards, create a diversion, or make whatever distraction necessary to render the Clockpart unprotected and make for a smooth robbery and getaway. I can't help but to hint at a certain heist that puts the first game's timed-button sequences to an even wittier use than its predecessor. Two words: ballroom dancing. Things, of course, don't always go as planned, and accommodations must often be made to account for such. Once again, the totally off-course delivery of Sly 2 makes for just a genius concept that few games have proved worthy of accomplishing.
While everyone who played the first Sly Cooper is by now familiar with the controls of the thieving raccoon, handling Bentley and Murray is a whole different ballgame. Each character has their strengths and weaknesses, and while Sly is naturally the most well-rounded of the three, his companions offer a welcome alternative to his rooftop-to-rooftop stealthiness. Bentley, for one, takes a more calculated approach on the battlefield, and is equipped with a supply of bombs and a tranquilizer gun, which also works as a melee weapon, though a bit on the futile side. It's worth mentioning that he's also an absolute riot to play as, dancing on his toes when immobile and hiking up his back when making a run for it. On the contrary, Murray (or as you'll become familiar with him through his superhero persona, "The Murray") is the muscle, and with moves that include power-packing punches and a pick-up-and-throw ability, handles enemy attacks with the most ease.
In between completing the dozens of jobs leading to the big heist per level, Sly 2 offers an entertaining little side-mission, if you will, that lend more to the thieving reputation of our protagonists. Scattered in each level are gleaming pieces of loot that can be picked up and brought back to the safe house. Most will begin to count down to self-destruction once you grab hold of them, and spanning across the level in a fight against the clock can be quite enjoyable. Guards patrolling the area will often times be carrying small valuables in their back pouches (you'll notice by the little shine created by them), from golden pens to actual gems, and with Sly's tasty new pickpocketing technique, they can be robbed for all their worth without noticing a thing, if you're good at it. So just what are all of these valuables good for? Thanks to Bentley's Internet-enabled laptop, they can be sold over ThiefNet, the game's Ebay-like program good for selling stolen loot and buying up new gadgets and power-ups for a set amount of coins. In racking up enough coins, which also includes tearing stuff up within the level and reaping the golden benefits they spew, you're able to put 'em to use by picking up new abilities for Sly, Bentley and Murray. Sly can additionally add to his expanded arsenal by collecting the thirty bottles to be found in each level and cracking open a safe using a three-digit code provided by ol' Bentley. Though these abilities, once acquired, will remain on your Gadget Grid, only three can be assigned at each time (one for L1, L2 and R2). You'll likely only give the majority of them a shot once and never touch them again, but nonetheless, it still adds a touch of variety to the game's combat.
Shortness may have been the primary complaint of the first Sly Cooper game, but Sly 2 makes up for it in spades. A one-time play-through of the game is going to take you 15-20 hours, tripling the six hour experience its predecessor offered (not including the Time Attack Mode). Best of all, everything flows together so damn seamlessly, with story transitions keeping you constantly on the edge of your seat, that it never feels like Sly 2 is being drawn out. You'll be hooked from the minute you grasp your controller and will be engaged until the very end.
With all that Sly 2: Band of Thieves has going for it, it pains me to have to point out the minor gameplay quibbles that my critiquing honesty won't let me pass up. With ditching the one-hit kill concept (and adding a health meter for each character), the game puts a heavy emphasis on evasion and stealth, even for a brawler like Murray. For the most part, it holds up well, and Sly's and Murray's abilities to take enemies out from behind and Bentley's dart-em-and-bomb-em technique do get the job done. If you mistakenly stumble into an enemy's field of view, though, you're vulnerable to a complete, relentless onslaught from the patrolling guards within range. Once the gun-equipped patrollers get on your tail, it's damn near impossible to take out the opposition without having your health gauge suffer the consequences (health pick-ups can only go so far). Even when running from battle, your pursuers will follow, and only with Sly's quick agility can you shake them off with the least trouble. If the enemies were just a bit more forgiving, Sly 2 would nab that perfect 10, but just know that this slight drawback is truly overshadowed by the remarkable gameplay offered here.
Cel-shading has been all the rage these past couple of years in the industry, and the Sly Cooper series has been one of the few to employ it in such an abstract sense that you'll wonder how you ever tolerated the other graphic garbage. What really do a number in the originality department are the thick character outlines, lifelike shadows and the flourishing beams radiating from guard flashlights and security floods overhead. There's just so much visual detail composing the characters and scenic accompaniments around you that one can't help but be impressed. Levels are as cleverly cartoon-like and lush as they come, the draw distance just is intimidating (just try ascending the highest peak in a stage and taking a gander), comic-like cutscenes impress, and every little subtlety comes together to paint an aesthetic masterpiece before your eyes. Having to get as picky as possible here, the only drawbacks I came across was the scarce inability to catch sight of the mission icons (which radiate in the sky a la Batman) at times, ever-so-brief camera slip-ups and the one occasion I noticed slowdown. That's it. I swear.
I'm going to be frank right of the bat here: I fell in love with the voices of Sly 2. On numerous occasions did I actually burst out laughing in response to the game's comically flourishing dialogue. These are characters you're going to remember: the cool, concentrated comments from Sly, the nasally, zealous yelps from Bentley when operations get out of hand, and the loveable vows of superhero action from "The Murray" are pure gold. The soundtrack delivers in an equally impressive outing, with each of the game's episodes sporting a looping tune appropriate for the environment (rustic-sounding music for the woods of Canada and tense strings in a haunted house-like stage, just to name a few). The genius subtleties from the first game make a reappearance as well, namely the muted pluckings as you simultaneously tip-toe on a ledge or sneak up on an unsuspecting guard. And may I make a suggestion? Every so often, crank down the music level and enjoy the harmonious sound effects that accompany each level, be they the soft crashes of the ocean or clicks and clanks from a bottle dancing atop a nearby flagpole. The ambient audio effects are dead-on, and ice the cake of just a fantastic soundtrack and line-up of character voiceovers.
Do you really need any more convincing? For the love of everything sacred in this world, bolt out the door pronto and scoop up a copy of Sly 2: Band of Thieves. If you were one of the few saps who actually missed out on Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus, heck, pick that up too and find out where the brilliance began. I have no qualms in saying that Sly 2 is hands-down the year's best platformer. This is just a masterfully constructed adventure that drips with charm and ingenuity and never fails to keep you involved, entertained, and loving every minute of it. You can take our word on it: this one is a gem.
